Dancing the Roomba!

I am double-dogging it this week.  We have our grand-dog, Roo, while his parents are visiting Emily's family in Florida.  Kasey and Roo have had a few standoffs and scuffles, mostly when there is a food dish involved.  They are getting along fine now.  Hey, I have a Masters degree in Behavior Management.  I exercised this high-level education by yelling at them to lie down and waving a rolled-up newspaper. They both retreated to their respective doggy beds.  Apparently, both dogs have a good understanding of the meaning of the rolled-up newspaper! 

Isn't this the very picture of innocence?  Who, me?

Yesterday, our local university and Alma Mater, North Carolina State,  played at the Champs Bowl in Florida.  We went to a party to watch the game with friends who have a large-screen TV.  Happily, our team beat West Virginia.  When we got home, it looked like a tornado had been let loose in the living room.

The Finger of Guilt is pointing at Roo, since Kasey has never chewed anything and Roo has.  This time, our two life-like fur cat toys were the victims.  They are actually made from rabbit's fur, I think.  Here is the new definition of "skinning the cat."

These are scaredy-cats!

Just in time for a long-haired dog and a destructive house-guest, I got a Roomba for Christmas.  I have wanted one for a long time.  I love it!  It is a vacuuming robot!

While Kasey is dribbling Kibble, Roomba is sweeping the floor!

Of course, with a long-haired dog, it is not long before Roomba says "Uh-oh!"  Clean Roomba's brushes!"  So, you have to empty the bin, clean the filter, clean the brushes, and get hair off the front wheel.  So much easier than dragging furniture around to clean.  And wasn't I smart to get a dog that matches my floor so well!

I also got a Nook-Color for Christmas, which I am trying to learn.  I am not good at the touch pad yet, since I have a very simple cell phone and have not been too interested in using Charlie's Droid. I think it will be very handy for downloading files of instructions for quilting projects and carrying to the sewing area.  So far I have no books on it, but it will be especially good for reading in the car on trips after dark. 

I also have some lovely new quilting and art books and DVD's, so I will be reviewing some of those in the near future.

Meanwhile, we are enjoying what's left of the snow in the brilliant sunshine.  I have wondered what would happen when Kasey encountered the mallard ducks that live in the pond down the street.

Apparently her DNA is missing the gene to retrieve ducks, which is what golden retrievers were bred to do.  She is not interested in them, and they came waddling right up to us.  Now, if it's a squirrel or a songbird at one of our feeders, that's a different story!

I had fun watching this red-tailed hawk sitting in one of the majestic oaks in the new Majestic Oaks section of my neighborhood.  I heard his screech while he was flying in, and then spotted him waiting for "the lord to provide" while he waited on his branch.

We also spotted two little deer in the woods behind our house.  It is easy to see them in the snow.  They were too fast for me to photograph, but it is fun to watch them.  The snow will be fading soon as the days are getting warmer in the afternoon, and we hear it should reach the 60's by the weekend.